The embodiments described herein relate generally to a hub assembly and, more particularly, to a hub assembly for use with a wind turbine.
Some known wind turbines include a hub that couples blades to a rotor. In at least some known wind turbines, the hub is one of the heaviest components of the wind turbine. More specifically, the hub is subjected to relatively high forces as the blades interact with wind and the rotor is rotated by the blades. At least one known hub is cast unitarily as one piece from iron. Such a hub includes a solid support structure adjacent each blade coupling region to carry tensile forces applied to the blade coupling region. At least one known solid support structure is formed integrally with the hub from casting iron. Such a support structure has a thickness of between about 50 millimeters (mm) and about 100 mm, depending on a diameter of a pitch bearing and associated bearing seat. Due to the properties of casting iron, the solid support structure is relatively thick to carry the tensile loads.